Latches for windows, doors and the like are well known and are generally comprised of a catch fixed to the door or window and movably engageable with the panel or frame of the portal in question. The catch is engageable with a keeper that is attached to the other panel/frame of the portal depending on the arrangement and will so engage when the portal is in the closed position. Metal latches on window frames are perhaps the most familiar latches whereby the catch pivots or swings about a post in a base secured to one of the window frames. The catch slides under and engages the keeper which is generally comprised of a metal flange secured to the other frame when the catch and keeper are in juxtaposition to one another. As such, the window is closed and locked. Turning the catch in the opposite direction unlocks the window and allows its opening.
Latches may also be comprised of a catch that is biased by a spring or other means that actuates the catch in a generally lock-wise direction with respect to the keeper. This allows for the automatic engagement of catch and keeper when the window or door is forcefully closed. There is no need for manual manipulation of the catch into the flange of the keeper.
The present invention is a novel latch whose catch is biased in this manner so that when applied to sliding doors or windows, the catch automatically engages the keeper when the door/window is slideably closed. The present invention also comprises a latch that is easily opened through the application of manual pressure at a point on the catch that pivotally forces it in a direction opposite to that of this bias thereby disengaging it from its locked position with the keeper so as to allow the door/frame to be slideably opened.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,918,754 to Isbister shows a plastics fastener for use in an automobile glove box whereby the latch unit is formed as a one-piece resiliently flexible plastics material comprising two body portions that are hinged to one another and which are further hinged to a latch and button respectively. Manual actuation of the button moves the catch from an operative, keeper engaging position to an inoperative, keeper-disengaged position. This enables the glove box to open accordingly.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,841,674 to Bisbing discloses a sliding-action slam latch for securing a door panel in closed position. The slam latch is of one-piece construction and is installed in a single opening in the door panel and is self retained therein. The latch operates by a spring biased sliding action to engage the door frame or striker plate. In one embodiment of the invention, the spring bias is provided by the resilience inherent in the plastic material from which the latch is made.
Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 5,158,329 to Schlack also discloses a slam latch for a sliding or hinged cabinet door that is comprised of side and rear walls from which extends a flexible lower plate having a catch. The latch mounts in an aperture positioned so that the flexible lower plate extends beyond the edge of the door and over the edge of an adjacent panel to secure the two together.
The slam action principle disclosed in the above reference is well known in the art and is embodied in a number of designs which usually incorporate a housing that encloses several components, one of which is a sliding bolt or pivoting spring biased catch. The general characteristic of these slam latches is the actuation of the latch to secure the door or window by cooperation with a door-framed-mounted striker plate when the door or window is pushed or slammed shut. In order to open the door/window secured with such a latch, a finger or pawl is provided for the manual exertion of force against the spring bias which disengages the catch from the striker plate.
The present invention is a novel slam latch for use in sliding glass doors that is of simplistic design and manufacture. The novel slam latch of the present invention is easy to operate and in one embodiment has eliminated the need of a pinned, biased connection between the catch and housing. Simple exertion of lateral pressure against the resilient portion of the latch is then translated into outward movement of the catch element itself, thereby disengaging it from the keeper unit. The slam latches of the present invention are particularly useful in sliding windows of automobiles and vans.